September 2017 - Parks & Recreation - 72

M U LT I S E R V I C E C E N T E R

toring, enrichment and homework assistance program. Between times, maybe
he'll go to the teen center to play foosball,
Ping-Pong or video games. He expects
that his friends will be doing the same
thing. " This is kind of a neighborhood
gathering spot, " he adds, leaning on the
Sanchez Center's broad front desk.
Sanchez is important both because of its
role and where it's located. " That corner
was always a hub, " says Austin Allen, 67,
an associate landscape-architecture professor at Louisiana State University who
lives nearby. To him, it seemed natural
that, within weeks of the 2005 disaster, the
National Guard moved onto the corner of
Caffin and Claiborne to create a Lower 9
checkpoint, where neighbors could check
in for escorts to their flood-torn homes.
Leaning Forward
Today, it's clear to anyone who enters the
Sanchez Center that they've entered the
heart of the Lower 9th Ward. Even the
center's spacious two-story atrium seems
perfectly designed for the way New Orleanians greet each other. That's made
easier at Sanchez, where nearly all staffers grew up in the neighborhood, from
Rec Center Manager Jerome Cochran,
on down. So, as neighbors walk in the

door, the greetings begin: " Good morning. How are you doing? Where's your
son today? How's your mama doing? "
Most of NORD's rec centers were inoperable after 2005, leaving the community with limited places to get together.
Even as recently as 2013, NORD had
only three operational recreation centers
and no year-round pools. Its green spaces
were also limited because, for years after
Katrina, the city's ballfields and playgrounds were used as FEMA-trailer parks
for people trying to rebuild their homes.
Then came the ribbon-cutting years,
which opened a series of stunning new
Residents enjoy the regulation-size basketball court in the brand new Sanchez
Center on opening day, May 29, 2015.

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buildings, including Sanchez, one of
NORD's crown jewels. " We placed our
model center here because the city of New
Orleans and Mayor Mitch Landrieu saw
an opportunity to renew and invest in the
historic Lower 9th Ward, " Richard says.
To become a multi-service center, Sanchez needs nonprofit partners, to implement, maintain and run its programs.
Those partners are recruited seasonally,
when NORD issues a call for programmatic partners. " NORD programmatic
partners bring creative and innovative
programs to the city's rec centers and
fields at no cost, " Richard adds, noting
that Sanchez, like the rest of NORD,
relies on such partners for many of its
afterschool programs, summer camps,
youth athletics, creative-art lessons, and
senior health and wellness classes.
Thanks to a $270,000 grant to STEM
NOLA from the Louisiana Department
of Education, one of the center's upstairs
classrooms was devoted last year to a stateof-the-art afterschool STEM program for
third to eighth graders, who learned about
concepts like buoyancy, solar power, electric circuits and the body's circulation system. In partnership with Dr. Martin Luther King Charter School, STEM NOLA
transforms the Sanchez Center into a 21st
Century Community Learning Center. " It
was always my ability to do science and
math that brought me joy, that kept me
safe, that got me out of trouble when I was
in schools, " says STEM NOLA Founder
Calvin Mackie. " So I know if it did that
for me, it would do the same for plenty of
other children in our community. "
Greer Goff Mendy, a 62-year-old New
Orleans dance legend, is dedicated to seeing African and African-diaspora art and
culture develop and persevere. Lessons at
the Sanchez also keep her in touch with
her family's Lower 9th roots. " I've come
full circle, " Mendy says.
Nanette Nelson, 44, who runs the
LOFT afterschool program, incorporates
NORD programming for art, music and
swimming into her academic calendar.

September 2017 - Parks & Recreation

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